The Louis d'or () is any number of French

coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

s first introduced by

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

in 1640. The name derives from the depiction of the portrait of King Louis on one side of the coin; the French royal coat of arms is on the reverse. The coin was replaced by the

French franc The franc (, ; sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money. It w ...

at the time of the

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

and later the similarly valued

Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. The actual value of the coins fluctuated according to monetary and fiscal policy (see

livre tournois The (; ; abbreviation: ₶.) was one of numerous currencies used in medieval France, and a unit of account (i.e., a monetary unit used in accounting) used in Early Modern France. The 1262 monetary reform established the as 20 , or 80.88 g ...

), but in 1726 the value was stabilized. The 1640 issue of Louis d’or contained five denominations: a half Louis and a one, two, four, and eight Louis. All subsequent issues through 1793 were only denominated in half, one, and two Louis.

Louis XIII

The Louis d'or (a gold coin) replaced the

franc The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (Style of the French sovereign, King of the Franks) used on early France, ...

which had been in circulation (in theory) since

John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–1 ...

. In actual practice the principal gold coin circulating in France in the earlier 17th century had been Spanish: the 6.7-gram double ''escudo'' or "

doubloon The doubloon (from Spanish ''doblón'', or "double", i.e. ''double escudo'') was a two-''escudo'' gold coin worth approximately $4 (four Spanish dollars) or 32 '' reales'', and weighing 6.766 grams (0.218 troy ounce) of 22-karat gold (or 0.917 fi ...

", of which the ''Louis d'or'' was an explicit copy. There also existed a half-Louis coin (the ''demi-louis d'or'') and a two-Louis coin (the ''double louis d'or''). The Louis d'or fixed several problems with previous French gold coinage.

previously struck coins from 23 carat gold even though

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infan ...

had made 22 carats the de facto international standard for gold coinage a century earlier.Coins in History, John Porteous , p 210. Royal edicts had set the official values of his gold coins so low that it was profitable to export them. Since they were still made by hand, cheaters could shave bits of gold from the edges of the coins before passing them on, an illegal process called clipping. To fix this,

Jean Varin Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

, a medalist from Liège, installed machinery in the Paris mint which made perfectly round coins so that clipping could not go undetected. The new demi Louis d'or maintained the weight of the old écu d’or, but decreasing its fineness to 22 carats, allowing it to circulate at a value of five

livres The (; ; abbreviation: ₶.) was one of numerous currencies used in medieval France, and a unit of account (i.e., a monetary unit used in accounting) used in Early Modern France. The 1262 monetary reform established the as 20 , or 80.88 gr ...

. Its double, the Louis d'or had the weight and fineness of the Spanish

pistole Pistole is the French name given to a Spanish gold coin in use from 1537; it was a doubloon or double escudo, the gold unit. The name was also given to the Louis d'Or of Louis XIII of France, and to other European gold coins of about the value ...

, or two escudo coins, which was an international trade currency. Smaller values were available through a number of silver coins – the

écu The term ''écu'' () or crown may refer to one of several French coins. The first ''écu'' was a gold coin (the ''écu d'or'') minted during the reign of Louis IX of France, in 1266. ''Écu'' (from Latin ''scutum'') means shield, and the coin ...

(sometimes called the ''louis d'argent''), also available in , and écu denominations (60, 30 and 15 ''sous'') – and copper coins:

sous The Sous region (also spelt Sus, Suss, Souss or Sousse) ( ar, سوس, sūs, shi, ⵙⵓⵙ, sus) is an area in mid-southern Morocco. Geologically, it is the alluvial basin of the Sous River (''Asif n Sus''), separated from the Sahara desert ...

(''s''.) and deniers (''d''.). The Louis d'or under Louis XIII had a dimension of about 25 mm, and a weight of 6.75 g. * Recto: the king's head turned to the right with the

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

"LVD XIII DG – FR ET NAV REX" (LVDOVICVS XIII DEI GRATIA FRANCIAE ET NAVARRAE REX "Louis XIII, by the grace of God king of France and of Navarre"). * Verso: the royal monogram (4 double "L"s surmounted by a crown with

fleur de lis The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

) and the motto "CHRS REGN VINC IMP" (CHRISTVS REGNAT VINCIT IMPERAT "Christ reigns, conquers and commands"). * Engraver:

(1604–1672) The double louis has a size of 28.5 mm and a weight of 13.47 g. The quatruple louis has a size of 35 mm and a weight of 26.88 g. The 10 louis has a size of 44 mm and a weight of 66.87 g. One of these was sold in 2012 for 210,000 euros, which makes it the most expensive French coin of any time. The half louis has a size of 20 mm and a weight of 3.34 g.

Louis XIV

The Louis d'or under

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

was similar in most respects to its predecessor and had a dimension of +/- 25 mm, and a weight of 6.75 g. * Recto: the king's head turned to the right with the

"LVD XIIII DG – FR ET NAV REX" (LVDOVICVS XIIII DEI GRATIA FRANCIAE ET NAVARRAE REX "Louis XIV, by the grace of God king of France and of Navarre"). * Verso: the royal monogram (4 double "L"s surmounted by a crown with

) and the motto "CHRS REGN VINC IMP" ("Christ reigns, defeats and commands"). * Engraver: Jean Varin (1604–1672)

Louis XV

Under

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...

, mintage of the Louis d’or was at first reduced while

John Law John Law may refer to: Arts and entertainment * John Law (artist) (born 1958), American artist * John Law (comics), comic-book character created by Will Eisner * John Law (film director), Hong Kong film director * John Law (musician) (born 1961) ...

introduced paper money. After Law's system failed and

Cardinal Fleury Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, th ...

became Louis XV's chief magistrate in 1726, France returned to a policy of sound money and the mintage of the Louis d’or returned to normal levels. The weight of the Louis d’or was now increased to 8.1580 g and gold content of 0.2405 troy oz, it was revalued at 20 ''

'' (''₶.''), and a commitment was made to maintain this valuation. This promise was kept until 1740 when the louis d’or was revalued to 24'' ₶.'', thereby effecting a 20% devaluation of the

livre LIVRE (, L), previously known as LIVRE/Tempo de Avançar (, L/TDA), is a green political party in Portugal founded in 2014. Its founding principles are ecology, universalism, freedom, equity, solidarity, socialism and Europeanism. Its symbol i ...

. This was the last devaluation until the French revolution replaced the louis d’or by the franc. * Recto: Crowned young head. Notable changes were made to the portrait when the weight of the Louis d’or was stabilized in 1726 and when it was revalued in 1740. * Verso: The early coinage of Louis XV has a variety of rapidly changing reverse types. When the value of the Louis d’or was stabilized in 1726, a reverse type with the coats of arms of France and Navarre in two ovals was adopted. This reverse earned the coin the nickname "Louis aux lunettes", i.e. Louis with glasses. * Engraver: Norbert Roettiers (1703–1748)

Louis XVI

The Louis d'or under

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

was minted between 1785 and 1792 and had a dimension of 23 mm, and a weight of 7.6490 g, a fineness of 0.917, and gold content of 0.2255 troy oz. The double louis has a size of 28.5 mm and a weight of 15.26 g. * Recto: the king's head turned to the left with the

"LVD XVI DG – FR ET NAV REX" (LVDOVICVS XVI DEI GRATIA FRANCIAE ET NAVARRAE REX "Louis XVI, by the grace of God king of France and of Navarre"). * Verso: Crowned arms of France and Navarre. * Engraver: B. Duvivier

Louis d'or "constitutionnel"

During the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

there was a coin named the "Louis d'or constitutionnel", a coin of the

First French Republic In the history of France, the First Republic (french: Première République), sometimes referred to in historiography as Revolutionary France, and officially the French Republic (french: République française), was founded on 21 September 1792 ...

. Engraved on the coin is "24 livres".

Louis XVIII

Contrary to what one might expect, the 20-franc gold coin under Louis XVIII was not a Louis d'or but a Napoléon gold coin. Because of the new monetary law under

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, all the 20 francs gold coins from Napoleon I to the 20-franc "coq" are Napoleon gold coins.

Royal Canadian Mint issues

In July 1725, the ship ''Chameau'' left France for Quebec, carrying dozens of military and political VIPs and a fortune in gold and silver, but sank near the end of the voyage. In 1961, a discovery of cannons scattered on the sea bottom alerted Alex Storm, a diver working part-time on a fishing trawler from Louisbourg. Storm carefully mapped the wreckage of the Chameau to locate the treasure compartment. In 1965, after several years of searching, the gold was found and the mystery of the treasure was solved. The

Royal Canadian Mint }) is the mint of Canada and a Crown corporation, operating under the ''Royal Canadian Mint Act''. The shares of the Mint are held in trust for the Crown in right of Canada. The Mint produces all of Canada's circulation coins, and manufactures ...

commemorated this by creating a 1/20th ounce gold coin. The coin was released in October 2006 and was composed of 99.99% pure gold. Its face value was one Canadian dollar and had a limited mintage of 10,000 coins.The Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, 61st Edition This numismatic coin, named the Gold Louis, had a weight of 1.555 grams and a diameter of 14.1 mm. Obverse: Queen Elizabeth II. Reverse: the royal monogram (4 double "L"s) surmounted by a crown with

and the motto "CHRS REGN VINC IMP" (''Christus regnat, vincit, et imperat''. Latin > "Christ reigns, conquers and commands"). Engravers: Royal Canadian Mint engravers.

Notes

References

Citations

Sources

External links

* {{Authority control Gold coins Coins of France Early Modern currencies Modern obsolete currencies Economic history of the Ancien Régime 1640 establishments in France